


here for you, here with you

by popnographic



Series: Rarepair drabbles [11]
Category: Free!
Genre: Angst, Fireworks, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-19
Updated: 2015-12-19
Packaged: 2018-05-07 13:47:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 872
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5458673
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/popnographic/pseuds/popnographic
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Haruka still associates fireworks with that evening he and Makoto had their first fight. Yet, he can't bring himself to turn Kisumi down after he's suggested the two go to see the fireworks together during the upcoming obon festival.</p>
            </blockquote>





	here for you, here with you

His heart had sunk in his chest at the suggestion, but Haruka couldn’t bring himself to say no. The look of hopefulness and excitement on Kisumi’s face had been the deciding factor—Haruka has yet to see any of Kisumi’s sad or angry expressions, and he hadn’t wanted this to be his first.

 _It’s just fireworks, anyway_ , he tries to tell himself for the umpteenth time, but he knows that it isn’t ‘just fireworks’; fireworks bring back bad memories he wants to forget about despite him and Makoto having made up ages ago. The thought of him fighting like that with anyone close to him is a scary one, considering he isn’t the most verbally expressive person, and he also has a bad habit of running away from confrontations.

What could he and Kisumi argue about, though? Haruka wonders, thinks, tries to come up with _anything_ , thinking he probably needs to be prepared for such a possibility, but he doesn’t come up with anything. Maybe it’s because they’re older and more mature now, both having grown a lot since high school. Haruka’s still trying to learn to put his thoughts and feelings into words, and Kisumi is—contrary to his previous assumptions—very patient.

Haruka looks at himself in the hallway mirror and lets out a long, slow exhale. A light knock on the door out to his patio brings him back to reality, and Haruka goes out to meet Kisumi who’s come to pick him up. The smile Kisumi greets him with makes Haruka’s heart skip a beat, but he doesn’t let it show.

“You ready to go?” Kisumi asks, giving him a kiss on the cheek as he approaches the other. He glances past Kisumi at the steps leading down and away from his house, and nods.

“Yeah.”

 

* * *

 

Much like the last time he’d been there, there aren’t many people around the hillside area of Iwatobi where they’ll be watching the fireworks. Haruka prefers it that way; he hates it when there’s a lot of people around during obon and other local festivals, because he tends to feel trapped, like he can’t escape.

Maybe that’s why it had been so easy for him to run away last time.

Kisumi isn’t shy to hold his hand as he leads Haruka up the hill to the viewpoint after they’ve bought a few things to snack on. Had he done this a few months ago, Haruka would’ve slapped his hand away and glared at him, but these days, he can’t really bring himself to care. Being with Kisumi has changed him a lot, and he thinks most of those changes are good. He feels more at ease with himself, with his life in general. Haruka feels _free_ , even though, like Rin had said, he _is_ dating someone and has technically settled down. Kisumi doesn’t make him feel like he has to stay, but Haruka _wants_ to.

“Wow,” Kisumi says in a voice full of awe, and it’s no wonder. The view from the hill is amazing, and they’re able to see pretty much the entire town of Iwatobi from where they stand.

The sight, the smells, the atmosphere—all of it makes Haruka feel anxious and slightly dizzy. He closes his eyes, but when he does, he sees Makoto’s troubled expression from that evening etched into his eyelids, and he opens them again.

“Haru?”

He blinks, and turns to look at Kisumi. “Yeah.”

“Are you okay?”

It’s such a trivial question, so easy to answer, yet Haruka finds it’s anything _but_ easy. He swallows hard, and looks out over the water again. “I’m fine.”

The first set of fireworks explode into the night sky, and Haruka watches the colours spread across the sky until they dissipate, clenching his hands into fists by his sides. His eyes start going out of focus, and despite trying to re-focus them, he isn’t succeeding. He takes a deep, shaky breath, and just at the end, his breath hitches in his throat when he feels Kisumi’s hand on his, slowly prying his fist open and taking Haruka’s hand in his.

He looks to his side, but Kisumi’s still watching the fireworks. The way they reflect in Kisumi’s eyes makes Haruka feel lightheaded for a different reason; Kisumi looks absolutely _beautiful_ in the light of the fireworks, despite the slight, sad frown on his face. Kisumi’s far more observant than Haruka gives him credit for, and he feels bad.

“I’m here for you, Haru,” Kisumi finally says, still not meeting Haruka’s gaze. “For you, _with_ you—both of those. Just… know that you’re not alone.”

Haruka looks at Kisumi, dumbfounded, even though Kisumi still won’t turn to face him directly. He turns to look at the fireworks again, too, and squeezes Kisumi’s hand.

“Thank you,” he says, just barely audible amidst the explosive sounds of the fireworks still painting the sky in all kinds of colours. He really means it—Kisumi’s almost _too_ good for Haruka, and while he knows he can’t say that since Kisumi would blatantly deny it, he still thinks so to himself.

In the corner of his eye, he sees Kisumi smile. He looks relieved, happy, and Haruka can’t help but feel the same way.

**Author's Note:**

> [radiodread](http://radiodread.tumblr.com) @ tumblr


End file.
